Cubs move Arrieta into rotation

Pitcher acquired in Feldman deal to start Friday and will get close look rest of season

August 14, 2013|By Mark Gonzales, Chicago Tribune reporter

Jake Arrieta will start against the Cardinals on Friday. (Chris Sweda/Tribune photo)

The Cubs will take another look at what they hope is a promising future Friday when Jake Arrieta starts against the Cardinals.

Arrieta, whom the Cubs acquired as part of the trade that sent Scott Feldman to the Orioles, will stay in the rotation in place of Carlos Villanueva, who will be dispatched to the bullpen.

Manager Dale Sveum said the promotion gives pitching coach Chris Bosio and assistant Lester Strode the opportunity to work closer with Arrieta and "see what we have."

Arrieta, 27, was 2-2 with a 3.56 ERA with 39 strikeouts and 16 walks in 301/3 innings covering seven starts at Triple-A Iowa. Sveum was impressed with his power fastball during his only start with the Cubs when Arrieta pitched six innings of two-hit ball against the Brewers in the second game of a July 30 doubleheader.

Thursday's day off also gave the Cubs the opportunity to adjust their rotation so left-hander Travis Wood and Edwin Jackson can switch spots. Wood will face the Nationals on Aug. 22 because they are batting 29 points lower against left-handers than right-handers.

Sveum said the decision to bump Villanueva from the rotation stemmed from the consistency of left-hander Chris Rusin, who allowed only three hits in six innings Wednesday against the Reds and has allowed two runs or fewer in four of his last five starts.

"Each good start I'm relaxing a little more and getting back in my rhythm as I was in Triple A," Rusin said.

Villanueva made his 17th relief appearance Wednesday.

Lesson for Lake: Sveum spoke at length about Junior Lake's decision Tuesday not to acknowledge the bunt sign was taken off on a 1-2 count and instead bunted back to the mound in the 10th inning of a 6-4 loss to the Reds in 11 innings.

"He knew the sign," Sveum said. "He wanted to do his job. But with a young player, your job is over then. You still can walk that count, hit a two-run home run, get a hit and hopefully your speed won't allow you to hit into a double play. That's why the manager takes (the bunt sign) off.The odds of getting a bunt down on a hard slider or something like that at this point aren't very good. You have to teach them that way."

"These are all teaching things and learning things that have to be done on a daily basis."

Second opinion: Reliever Matt Guerrier sought a second opinion on a small tear of his flexor mass near his right elbow from Reds orthopedic surgeon Timothy Kremchek.

Guerrier said the ligament is fine and that surgery would sideline him from six to eight months but could be ready for spring training.

Guerrier suffered the injury on a pitch to the Phillies' Chase Utley on Aug. 7 but faced a few more batters before he was pulled.

"I probably should have just come out of the game," he said. "I felt something similar to it before and felt I could battle through it."

Guerrier said the pain was sharper than normal and he didn't recognize the severity until he noticed the swelling.

"You go through times during a season where you don't feel good and certain pitches don't feel good in certain outings," Guerrier said. "Sometimes it happens and it goes away right away. It's something I thought or hope would go away, and it just didn't.''

Guerrier hoped he could heal quickly and re-sign with the Cubs, even if it was for a minor league contract.

"You want people to want to come back here and play, and you try to create an atmosphere that people like to be around," Sveum said.

Extra innings: Iowa infielder Josh Vitters re-injured his right hamstring and could return to the disabled list, the Des Moines Register reported. … Outfielder Jacob Hannemann, the Cubs' third pick in the June amateur draft, suffered a slight ligament tear in his right non-throwing arm but won't require surgery.